The defendants sought leave to appeal against their convictions for a brutal and horrific murder. Becerra suggeste dtat he had wanted to withdraw from the event before the murder took place.
Held: The appeal failed: ‘ in the circumstances then prevailing, the knife having already been used and being contemplated for further use when it was handed over by Becerra to Cooper for the purpose (if necessary) of avoiding by violent means the hazards of identification, if Becerra wanted to withdraw at that stage, he would have to ‘countermand’, to use the word that is used in some of the cases or ‘repent’ to use another word so used, in some manner vastly different and vastly more effective than merely to say ‘Come on, let’s go’ and go out through the window.’
Roskill, Bridge LJJm Kilner Brown J
(1975) 62 Cr App R 212, [1975] EWCA Crim 6
Bailii
England and Wales
Citing:
Applied – Regina v Whitehouse 1941
(British Columbia) The court asked when a party to a joint enterprise may claim to have abandoned or withdrawn from that enterprise ‘Can it be said on the facts of this case that a mere change of mental intention and a quitting of the scene of the . .
Cited – Rex v Saunders and Archer 1573
Misdirected Poison remained Offence
A intended to kill his wife, and gave her a poisoned apple. She gave it her child who ate the apple and died. The defendant had not intended his daughter to eat the apple.
Held: A was guilty of the murder of his daughter, but his wife, who was . .
Cited – Rex v Edmeads And Others 4-Mar-1828
Common Intent Required for Joint Enterprise
(Berkshire Assizes) An indictment charged Edmeads and others with unlawfully shooting at game keepers.
Held: The learned Baron ruled on the question of common intent, ‘that is rather a question for the Jury; but still, on this evidence, it is . .
Cited – Rex v Croft CCA 1944
A person who was present at the suicide of another and who assisted or encouraged the suicide, is guilty of murder as a principal in the second degree. The survivor of a suicide pact was properly convicted of murder. The court considered liability . .
Cited by:
Cited – Regina v Derek William Bentley (Deceased) CACD 30-Jul-1998
The defendant had been convicted of murder in 1952, and hung. A court hearing an appeal after many years must apply laws from different eras to different aspects. The law of the offence (of murder) to be applied was that at the time of the offence. . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Crime
Leading Case
Updated: 01 November 2021; Ref: scu.192083